Self-standing pouch

ABSTRACT

A self-standing pouch is provided. The pouch includes a pouch body and a flap. The flap is disposed beneath the pouch body. The flap may be folded so as to form a generally planar surface disposed at the bottom of the pouch. The planar surface is operable to support the pouch in a generally upright manner. The pouch may include a fitment and a pair of gussets. The fitment may be disposed at the top of the pouch, or on a portion of the pouch body. The fitment is operable to provide access to the pouch contents. The gussets help the pouch expand during pouch filling operations and as contents of the flap are displaced into the pouch body when the flap is folded to form the planar surface.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This Application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application61/407,272 filed on Oct. 27, 2010, the disclosure of which isincorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Flexible pouches are currently known and used. Flexible pouches mayconveniently store products such as beverages and other liquids.Further, flexible pouches are portable and may be easily handled withone hand. Flexible pouches may include gussets disposed along the sidesto help the pouch expand and hold more liquids. Some currently knownflexible pouches are self-standing, meaning the pouches are configuredto hold themselves in a generally upright manner.

Current self-standing pouches are commonly configured with a pluralityof seams formed along the bottom edges of the pouch. The seams form awall having a distal edge. The distal edge is spaced apart from thebottom surface of the pouch so as to hold the pouch in a substantiallyupright position, as shown in FIG. 1.

The formation of such a self-standing pouch, more particularly, theseams on the bottom edges, requires additional tooling and a dedicatedsheet formed along the bottom portion of the pouch. Thus in the massassembly of such pouches, self-standing pouches require the addition ofan extra tool piece. The extra tool piece increases manufacturing costs.

Furthermore, sealing the bottom portion of the pouch to form the wall isan extra step in the manufacturing process. This increases themanufacturing time and costs of the self-standing pouch. Thus, itremains desirable to have a self-standing flexible pouch wherein theadded cost and time of forming the bottom wall are not necessary.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention discloses a self-standing pouch. The pouchincludes a pouch body and a flap. The flap is disposed beneath the pouchbody. The flap may be folded so as to form a generally planar surfacedisposed at the bottom of the pouch. The planar surface is operable tosupport the pouch in a generally upright manner.

The pouch may include a fitment and a pair of gussets. The fitment maybe disposed at the top of the pouch, or on a portion of the pouch body.The fitment is operable to provide access to the pouch contents. Thegussets help the pouch expand during pouch filling operations and ascontents of the flap are displaced into the pouch body when the flap isfolded to form the planar surface.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

A better understanding of the present invention will be had uponreference to the following detailed description when read in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawing wherein like reference characters refer tolike parts throughout the several views and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a prior art self-standing pouch;

FIG. 2 is a frontal view of the self-standing pouch of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 a is an illustration of a preferred embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 is side view of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a view of FIG. 3 showing the flap partially folded;

FIG. 5 is a view of FIG. 4 showing the flap folded over so as to form arelatively planar surface for supporting the pouch in a substantiallyupright manner;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the selfstanding pouch showing the flap partially folded;

FIG. 7 is view of FIG. 6 showing the flap folded over; and

FIG. 8 is a view of FIG. 7 showing and the flap attached to the pouchbody.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

With reference now to FIGS. 2, 3, 4 and 5 an embodiment of aself-standing pouch 10 is provided. The pouch 10 may be formed from asheet 12 of pliable material such as treated polymer or aluminum foil.Respective the sheet 12 is formed into a pouch 10 having a pouch bodyportion 14, and a flap portion 16. The flap portion 16 may include anadhesive portion 18 operable to secure the flap portion 16 to the pouchbody portion 14.

An edge of the pouch 10 may be left unsealed so as to form an opening 22and a fitment 24 may be mounted within the opening 22 and sealed theretoso as to allow the user to access the contents of the pouch 10. Itshould be appreciated the fitment 24 may be mounted to other locationson the pouch 10, such as the outer surface of the pouch body 14.

With reference now to FIGS. 2 a, and 6-8, a second preferred embodimentof the pouch 10 is provided. In the second preferred embodiment, thepouch 10 includes gussets 26 at opposing sides. The gussets 26 allow thepouch 10 to expand during filling operations. The folded sheet 12 ofpliable material may then be sealed so as to form a pouch 10 having sideedges 28, a bottom edge 30, and a top edge 32. The pouch 10 may furtherinclude a pouch body portion 14 and a flap portion 16. The folded sheet12 may be sealed such that the flap portion 16 of the pouch 10 istapered.

The remaining sheet 12 of pliable material may then be simply trimmedfrom the pouch 10. Any sealing method for forming the edges 28, 30, 32,34 of the pouch 10 may be used herein, illustratively including heat,ultrasonic, or a combination of the two.

The pouch 10 may be formed by a pair of symmetrical sheets 12 andincludes a pair of side sheets 26, as shown in FIG. 2 a. Each of theside sheets 26 includes a fold 36 so as to form a gusset 26. One gusset26 is disposed on one side of the pouch body portion 19, and the othergusset 26 is disposed on the other side of the pouch body portion 14.With reference now to FIGS. 3-8, a view of the side of the pouch 10 isprovided. Each side of the pouch 10 is symmetrical to the other side.Thus, an explanation of one side is applicable to explain the structureof the opposing side.

The pouch 10 includes a pouch body portion 14 and a flap portion 16. Theside edges 28 of the sheets 12 are sealed together to form the pouchbody portion 14. Each side of the pouch 10 is sealed to respectiveopposing edges 28, 30, 32, 34 of the side sheets 26 to form gussets 26on each side of the pouch 10. The side sheet 26 is made of likematerial, meaning a material similar to the front and rear sheets 12 ofthe pouch body portion 14. In general, the side sheets 26 extend betweenthe front and rear sheets 12. Each of the side sheets 26 includes a fold36 running generally between the top portion and the bottom portion ofthe pouch body portion 14. Thus, as liquids are introduced into thepouch body portion 19, the gusset 26 allows the back sheet 12 and frontsheet 12 to expand away from each other thus facilitating fillingoperations.

With reference again to FIG. 2 a, the sheets 12 are shown havingcorresponding side edges 28 of similar length and a top side extendingbetween respective side edges 28 so as to defined the width of the pouchbody portion 14. A portion of the respective top edges 32 are sealedtogether. The remaining portion of respective top edges 32 is leftunsealed so as to provide an opening 22 for accommodating a fitment 24.

The flap portion 16 of each sheet 12 is integrally formed to the pouchbody portion 14 and is disposed at the bottom of the pouch body portion14, i.e. spaced apart and opposite the top edges 32. The flap portion 16includes flap edges 34 and a bottom edge 30. The respective flap edges34 are angled relative to the side edges 28 of the pouch body portion 14so as to form a generally tapered flap portion 16.

Preferably, the flap portion 16 is tapered such that the bottom end isnarrower in width than the top end. The flap portion 16 facilitates thedisplacement of liquids into the pouch body portion 14 when the flapportion 16 is folded onto the pouch body portion 14. Specifically, thebottom edge 30 of the flap portion 16 is less than or equal to half thewidth of the pouch 10 top edge 32 of the pouch 10. Thus, the flapportion 16 narrows as the flap portion 16 extends away from the top endof the pouch 10. The flap portion 16 is sealed together so as tocompletely enclose the pouch 10. However, it is anticipated that thebottom edge 30 may be wider than the top edge 32 in instances where thepouch body portion 14 may accommodate the liquid held in the flapportion 16.

With reference now to FIG. 3 the flap is shown aligned along a firstaxis, as indicated by line 3-3. The side gussets 26 have been expandedindicating that the pouch body portion 14 is filled with a liquid. Moreparticularly, the tapered end portion of the flap portion 16 is alsoexpanded as the weight of the liquid settles within the flap portion 16.

With reference now to FIG. 4, the flap portion 16 is shown partiallyfolded over so as to be displaced from the first axis. As illustrated bythe drawing, the flap displaces the liquid relatively upwards andfurther into the pouch body portion 14, causing the gussets 26 tofurther expand. With reference now to FIG. 5, the flap is showncompletely folded over so as to form a planar surface disposed at thebottom of the pouch 10. The planar surface supports the pouch bodyportion 14 in a substantially upright manner. The flap may be sealed tothe pouch 10 so as to maintain the formation of the planar surface. Forinstance, the distal end of the flap may be attached to one of eitherthe front or back walls of the pouch 10.

Though the flap portion 16 is shown as having linear side edges 28extending from the pouch body portion 14, it is anticipated that theside edges 28 of the flap portion 16 may have an arcuate shape or suchthat the flap portion 16 narrows as it proceeds away from the top end ofthe pouch 10. It is also shown in the drawings that the flap portion 16is integrally formed with the front sheet 12 and the back sheet 12 andthat the front sheet 12 and the back sheet 12 are symmetrical to eachother so as to form the pouch body portion 14.

The flap portion 16 may be fixed to the pouch body portion 14 using anymethod currently known in the art to include an adhesive, ultrasonicwelding, or heat sealing. Preferably the flap portion 16 is sealed usingtape 38 so as to allow a user to adjust the dimensions of the bottomsurface based upon the content of the pouch 10. Alternatively, anadhesive portion 18 may be formed on the outer surface of the flapportion 16. The adhesive portion 18 operable to hold a portion of theflap portion 16 against a portion of the pouch 10 body

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present inventionare possible in light of the above teachings and may be practicedotherwise than as specifically described.

1. A pouch formed from a sheet of pliable material and operable to holditself in an upright manner, the pouch configured to hold a liquid, thepouch comprising: a pouch body portion configured to hold the liquid; aflap portion integrally formed to the body portion and configured tohold a portion of the liquid; the flap portion may be folded so as toform a generally planar surface, wherein liquid in the flap portion isdisplaced into the pouch body portion, the generally planar surfaceoperable to support the pouch in a generally upright manner.
 2. Thepouch body as set forth in claim 1, wherein the distal end of the flapportion is narrower than the pouch body portion so as to be tapered. 3.The pouch body as set forth in claim 1, further including a pair ofgussets, one of the pair of gussets formed on one side of the pouchbody, and the other of the pair of gussets formed on the other side ofthe pouch body.
 4. The pouch body as set forth in claim 1, wherein theflap portion includes an adhesive portion formed on the outer surface ofthe flap portion, the adhesive portion operable to hold a portion of theflap portion against a portion of the pouch body.
 5. The pouch body asset forth in claim 1, further including tape operable to hold a portionof the flap portion against a portion of the pouch body.
 6. The pouchbody as set forth in claim 1, further including a fitment mounted to thepouch body, the fitment providing access to the contents of the pouch.7. A pouch configured to hold itself in an upright manner, the pouchcomprising: a pair of sheets of pliable material, each of the pair ofsheets of pliable material having side edges, a pouch body portion and aflap portion, the side edges of respective sheets seal to each other soas to form a pouch body and a flap, the flap operable to be folded ontoa portion of the pouch body so as to define a generally planar surfaceat the base of the pouch body, the planar surface operable to supportthe pouch in an upright manner.
 8. The pouch as set forth in claim 7,wherein the pair of sheets of pliable material is one selected from thegroup consisting of treated polymer or aluminum foil.
 9. The pouch bodyas set forth in claim 7, wherein the distal end of the flap is narrowerthan the pouch body so as to be tapered.
 10. The pouch body as set forthin claim 7, further including a pair of gussets, one of the pair ofgussets formed on one side of the pouch body, and the other of the pairof gussets formed on the other side of the pouch body.
 11. The pouchbody as set forth in claim 7, wherein the flap includes an adhesiveportion formed on the outer surface of the flap portion, the adhesiveportion operable to hold a portion of the flap portion against a portionof the pouch body.
 12. The pouch body as set forth in claim 7, furtherincluding tape operable to hold a portion of the flap portion against aportion of the pouch body.
 13. The pouch body as set forth in claim 7,further including a fitment mounted to the pouch body, the fitmentproviding access to the contents of the pouch.